This invention relates to a cable attachment assembly for use with an automotive vehicle having a cargo or storage compartment closed by a tailgate. More particularly, the invention relates to a cable attachment assembly and method for adjusting the height of the tailgate to an intermediate position between fully open and closed.
Automotive vehicles having a cargo or storage compartment closed by a tailgate have been known for many years. The cargo box or storage compartment typically includes a standard length, which allows the accommodation of a load having a length equal to or less than the length of the cargo box. Devices for adjusting the tailgate height to allow the cargo space to accommodate loads having a length longer than the cargo bed have been known for many years. U.S. Pat. No. 622,049, issued to Kissinger in 1899, describes a device for adjustably supporting and locking the end gate of a wagon. The disclosed device uses a bracket having a plurality of angular teeth or hooks adapted to engage a pin or bolt supported by the bracket. U.S. Pat. No. 773,776, issued to Barber in 1904, discloses a mechanical device having a pair of guide wings that are fitted with a guideway for adjustably positioning the end gate of a wagon at a position between fully open and closed.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,645,310 (hereinafter xe2x80x9cthe ""310 patentxe2x80x9d), issued to McLaughlin, discloses an apparatus for holding a tailgate in a partially open position by using a connector of a predetermined length having first and second attachment means connected to its first and second ends, respectively. The first attachment means can be coupled to a vehicle body and the second attachment means can be coupled to the tailgate. The degree of openness of the tailgate can be determined by the length of the connector, the location of the first attachment means on the vehicle body and the location of the second attachment means on the tailgate.
The ""310 patent further describes several additional embodiments of devices that can be used to vary the height of the tailgate, each requiring the use of one or more cables or connectors in conjunction with one or more attachment points located on the vehicle body and at least one attachment point located on the tailgate.
Finally, U.S. Pat. No. 5,934,727 (hereinafter xe2x80x9cthe ""727 patentxe2x80x9d) owned by the assignee of the present invention, discloses a tailgate for a pick up truck that can be folded downward and held open in an intermediate position by adjustable side straps. The adjustable side straps include an intermediate link which can be attached to a mating attachment feature, such as a disk, mounted on the respective side edges of the cargo box. Adjustment of the strap can be accomplished manually, simply by detaching any other link on the strap and attaching the intermediate link to the attachment feature. The ""727 patent further states that the tailgate could be held in the intermediate position by straps having numerous additional links, by cables having adjustable keyhole fittings, by chains with adjustable links that snap onto any mating feature on the cargo box or by another mating feature on the cargo box, or by any other adjustable rack and pinion or winching devices which can adjust the tailgate to numerous desired partially open positions, including the intermediate position.
The present invention is directed to a dual position endgate cable post assembly and a dual position cable post that allows positioning the tailgate of an automotive vehicle at any height between the fully open and closed positions. The dual position endgate cable post assembly includes a first cable attachment member supported by the body of an automotive vehicle, and a second cable attachment member coupled to the tailgate of the automotive vehicle. The dual position endgate cable post assembly also includes a third cable attachment member supported by the body of the vehicle, wherein the third cable attachment member is located below the first cable attachment member.
The dual position endgate cable post assembly further includes a cable having a first end that can be supported by the first cable attachment member and a second end that can be supported by the second cable attachment member, wherein the cable can be wound one or more times around the third cable attachment member to adjust the length of the cable extending between the first cable attachment member and the second cable attachment member. This arrangement allows the height of the tailgate to be varied when the second end of the cable is coupled to the second cable attachment member.
The first cable attachment member and second cable attachment are preferably lugs, each of which can include an elongated body fabricated of a metal, plastic or composite material. The lugs include a free end and one end supported by the body of the automotive vehicle.
The third cable attachment member is preferably a circular disk having a sidewall surface defining a channel therein for receiving the cable. The third cable attachment member is made of metal, wherein the metal is covered with a polymer coating.
In the disclosed embodiment, the third attachment member can be secured in position as supported by the vehicle body using a mechanical fastener such as a bolt. Additionally, the third attachment member can be reinforced using a body reinforcement panel positioned adjacent the vehicle body and the third attachment member.
The dual position endgate cable post assembly can be used in conjunction with a dual position cable post including a circular disk having an elongated body portion, the body porting including a sidewall surface defining a channel in the outer periphery thereof for receiving a cable, the circular disk being adapted for attachment to an automotive vehicle.
In an alternative embodiment, the dual position endgate cable post assembly can be installed on a vehicle body such that the first cable attachment member and the third cable attachment member are supported by an inner panel supported by the body of the automotive vehicle.
The present invention also relates to a method of adjusting a tailgate to an intermediate position between fully open and fully closed including the steps of: (1) providing a first cable attachment member supported by the body of an automotive vehicle; (2) providing a second cable attachment member for attachment to the tailgate of an automotive vehicle; (3) providing a third cable attachment member supported by the body of an automotive vehicle at a position below the first cable attachment member; and (4) extending a cable between the first cable attachment member and the second cable attachment member, wherein a portion of the cable can be wound one or more times around the third cable attachment member to vary the length of the cable that extends between the first cable attachment member and the second cable attachment member.